ALA President-elect Rettig to host advocacy planning session

Contact: Marci Merola
Director, OLA
(312)280-2431
mmerola@ala.org

For Immediate Release,
April 15, 2008

ALA President-elect Rettig to host advocacy planning session

<?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />CHICAGO – American Library Association (ALA) President-elect Jim Rettig is seeking member input to help plan his advocacy initiative on Saturday, June 28, from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m., at the ALA 2008 Annual Conference.

The session, entitled “Advocating for All Libraries: Saving the Library Ecosystem,” will focus on the need for the library community to broaden its advocacy efforts to encompass all types of libraries.

“What happens to one type of library affects all of us,” said Rettig. “Library communities around the country need to become a unified voice, ready to advocate for all libraries.”

The goal of the session is to create elements of a plan for the advocacy initiative to take place during Rettig’s presidential year

“With the funding crisis that’s affecting libraries of all types in so many areas around the country, Jim’s advocacy initiative couldn’t arrive at a better time,” said Carol Brey-Casiano, Chair of the new Advocacy Committee and 2004-2005 ALA President. “I’m hoping that the ALA membership will take the message of its incoming president to heart. We need to start thinking bigger.”

The program is sponsored by the Office for Library Advocacy. Brey-Casiano, and Marci Merola, Director of the ALA Office for Library Advocacy will help facilitate this session. Attendance is open to all registered attendees of ALA’s 2008 Annual Conference. Those interested in attending should e-mail rsvp@ala.org no later than June 9, 2008; write “Planning Session” in the subject line. For more information, please visit www.ala.org/rettigadvocacy.

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